Toilet

ABSTRACT

Lavatory for connection to a composting container ( 1 ) or a sewage pipe forming part of a sewage system. The lavatory has a seat part ( 11 ), a lid ( 12 ) adapted to the seat part, and a hollow support body ( 13 ) supporting the seat part. The support body ( 13 ) surrounds or forms an inner duct through which fecal matter passes to the container or the sewage pipe. The rear wall of the duct slopes backwards from the seat part ( 11 ) in the downward direction so that it forms an angle (α) with the vertical.

The present invention relates to a lavatory for connection to acomposting container or a sewage pipe forming part of a sewage system,comprising a seat part, a lid adapted to the seat part, and a hollowsupport body supporting the seat part. The lavatory is particularlysuitable for use in a composting toilet of the type comprising acomposting container, a lavatory connected to the container and aventilation duct with a fan leading off from the container.

Composting toilets of the type indicated above have been well-known fora long time and, from the environmental point of view, represent aconsiderably better alternative for handling biodegradable material thanthe water-flushing systems frequently used today, which are leading toserious and increasing environmental destruction. A more detaileddescription of the degradation process used is not included here as itis well-documented in patent literature.

In addition to permitting effective biodegradation of waste, acomposting toilet must be hygienic and constructed in such a manner thatno unpleasant odours arise in the toilet space. It must also be simpleand inexpensive to produce and install and require as few components aspossible.

A main object of the present invention is to produce a hygienic andpractical lavatory which is suitable for use in dry toilets of thecomposting type. The invention aims in particular to solve the problemof faecal matter coming into contact with and adhering to the innersurface of the lavatory.

Another object is to produce such a lavatory which, when used in acomposting toilet, contributes to effective ventilation of both thetoilet space and the composting container.

According to the invention, the first object is achieved by means of alavatory of the type indicated in the first paragraph, in which thesupport body surrounds or forms an inner duct through which faecalmatter passes to the container or the sewage pipe, the rear wall of theduct sloping backwards from the seat part in the downward direction sothat it forms an angle with the vertical.

The result of this sloping of the inner duct of the lavatory is thatfaecal matter will not, as is the case in previously known lavatories,come into contact with in particular the rear surface of the interior ofthe lavatory. Without water-flushing, this faecal matter dries andsticks to the inner surface, which is a problem for reasons of bothhygiene and appearance.

The inner duct of the lavatory is suitably formed by a tubular drum, thedrum sloping backwards from the seat part in the downward direction sothat a longitudinal axis of the drum forms an angle with the vertical.

In a preferred embodiment, the slope of the drum is such that a point atthe very rear on the delimiting edge of the upper opening of the drum islocated essentially directly above the centre of the lower opening ofthe drum.

The second of the objects of the invention mentioned above is achievedby means of a lavatory according to the above, in which the drum isarranged in a surrounding support body so that a space is formed betweenthe drum and the support body, which space or ducts arranged therein isor are connected to the space in the composting container, ventilationopenings being arranged in the outer wall of the support body and/or thelid of the lavatory so that the toilet room is ventilated simultaneouslywith the composting container via said ventilation openings, said spaceand/or drum, the composting container and the ventilation duct.

The lavatory will thus constitute an active and essential part of theventilation of the toilet room and the composting container. In thisway, effective and cost-saving ventilation of both the toilet space andthe composting container is achieved, with the use of only oneventilation duct with a fan.

The lavatory can also be made in the form of an economy-flush watertoilet with an openable valve arrangement or a water trap in the drum,the upper part of the drum being made with ventilation openings so asalso to allow ventilation of the space formed in the drum above thevalve arrangement or the water trap via the space lying outsidesimultaneously with the ventilation of the toilet space.

It is preferred that the drum is arranged in a surrounding, essentiallytubular support body. The slot-shaped space formed between the drum andthe support body can be filled with an adhesive material whichinterconnects the drum and the support body to form what is known as asandwich construction. For reasons of hygiene inter alia, at least thedrum is made of stainless steel.

A composting toilet with a lavatory of this type is simple andinexpensive to produce, requires few components and brings about veryeffective ventilation of both the toilet space and the compostingcontainer. As the toilet space is ventilated via the lavatory and thecomposting container, the risk is eliminated of gases being drawn upthough the lavatory to the toilet space as a consequence of extractionvalves located therein.

Further features of the invention emerge from the patent claims below.

The invention will be described in greater detail below with referenceto the embodiments shown by way of examples in the appended drawings.

FIG. 1 illustrates the basic construction of a lavatory according to theinvention.

FIG. 2 illustrates the use of a lavatory according to FIG. 1 in acomposting toilet.

FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of a ventilated dry lavatory.

FIG. 4 is a net plug intended for use in the lavatory in FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 shows diagrammatically an embodiment of a ventilatedeconomy-flush water lavatory.

FIG. 6 is a net plug intended for use in the lavatory in FIG. 5.

FIG. 1 shows diagrammatically an embodiment of a dry lavatory accordingto the invention. The lavatory comprises a seat part 11 with a lid 12and a hollow support body 13 supporting the seat part. Arranged in thesupport body is a tubular drum 14 which is connected to the seat partand intended to receive waste and convey it to a container 1 lyingunderneath. Between the drum 14 and the support body 13, a space in theform of an annular slot is formed, which in this embodiment is filledwith foamed plastic which adheres to and interconnects the shell 13 andthe drum 14 to form a very rigid sandwich construction.

If the lavatory is to form part of the ventilation system for the toiletroom it is arranged in and the composting container 1 lying underneath,ventilation ducts (not shown) are arranged in the foamed-plasticmaterial 27. The ducts then connect upper ventilation openings in thelavatory to the container lying underneath via an opening 16 in thefloor 7 and a corresponding opening 23 in the top part of the container1, as will be described below with reference to inter alia FIG. 3.

A lavatory according to FIG. 1 is simple to produce and is suitably madein the form of two interconnected tubular pieces made of stainless steelor plastic. Other material, such as porcelain, concrete or the like, canalso be used. However, for reasons of hygiene, it is preferred that atleast the inner drum 14 is made of stainless steel.

The seat part 11 suitably slopes in slightly towards the drum, whichprevents liquid remaining on the seat edge on cleaning. When the toiletis used as a urinal, the sloping prevents urine from remaining on theedge, which is important from the point of view of hygiene.

As can be seen from FIG. 1, the drum 14 forms an angle with the verticalso that the rear wall of the drum slopes backwards from the seat part 11in the downward direction. This means that faecal matter will fallfreely through the drum 14 without coming into contact with the rearwall of the latter.

It is preferred that the drum 14 has such a slope that a point A at thevery rear on the delimiting edge of the upper opening of the drum islocated essentially directly above the centre B of the lower opening ofthe drum. The angle α may be of the order of 5-25°, preferably roughly10°.

In a more conventional design of the lavatory, the whole drum 14 doesnot have to slope, but it is sufficient in this case for a portion ofthe rear wall of the drum to slope as shown in the figure. The frontwall can be made in a conventional manner.

Reference number 28 indicates a number of nozzles arranged in the upperpart of the drum 14, which are connected to a pressurized-water line inorder to direct cleaning water-jets onto the inner surface of the drum.Tests have shown that, when a drum made of stainless steel is used, itis necessary to clean this with pressurized-water jets only after arelatively large number of visits, roughly once a week. This is to becompared with the bowls used in today's installations, which need to becleaned several times a day. Alternatively, the nozzles 28 can be usedto spray a water film onto the drum, which prevents faecal matter dryingand sticking to the latter. As will be described below, the drum canalso be provided with a valve arrangement or a water trap so as to serveas a water toilet.

FIG. 2 illustrates the use of a lavatory according to FIG. 1. In thisconnection, 1 designates a container which forms a decomposing chamber.In this embodiment, the container is constructed using plane wallsections and comprises a sloping plane 2 inserted subsequently in theform of a separate unit. Alternatively, the bottom of the container canserve as a sloping plane. The container can be constructed in anothersuitable manner and with any shape and can, for example, consist of twoprefabricated halves made of plastic material. It can also be assembledfrom panel sections and lined by means of a plastic sack. Furthermore,it can be intended to serve more than one lavatory.

The lower part of the sloping plane 2 is made with a screen arrangement3 for conducting off the liquid which is separated from the compostingbed 4. This liquid can be led down to exchangeable containers lyingunderneath or, as in this embodiment, led out to an interim storage tankor the like via a collecting trough 25 and a pipe 26. If appropriate,the pipe 26 can pass through a soil filter for conversion of the urineinto a nutrient liquid.

As the sloping plane 2 is inserted loosely in the container 1, it issuitably made with members which allow the plane 2 to be supported atvarious heights in order thus to adapt the container to differentcapacity requirements.

Reference number 5 designates a lavatory which is positioned above ahole in the floor 7 of the toilet space 6. The lavatory is provided withan inner drum 14 through which faecal matter and urine fall down ontothe composting bed 4 lying underneath on the sloping plane 2.

In order to ensure an effective degradation process and preventunpleasant odours in the toilet space 6, effective ventilation of thecontainer 1 is of utmost importance. As shown, a ventilation pipe 9provided with a fan 10 and connected to the container 1 is provided tothis end. The pipe extends up above the ridge on the associated toiletbuilding. In this way, an effective circulation of air from the toiletspace 6 via the lavatory 5, the container 1 and from the latter upthrough the ventilation pipe 9 can be obtained.

FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of the lavatory adapted for such ventilation.The slot-shaped space 15 between the support body 13 and the drum 14,which can be filled and provided with ventilation ducts, communicateswith the interior of the container 1 via an opening 16 in the floor 7and a corresponding opening 23 in the top part of the container 1.

Arranged in the upper part of the support body 13 are ventilationopenings 18 which are covered with an insect net. This is suitablyeffected by plugs 19 provided with nets, see FIG. 4, being inserted intothe openings 18. As previously, reference number 9 designates aventilation pipe 9 with a fan 10, which pipe suitably extends up abovethe roof of the toilet building.

With the lavatory shown and the ventilation pipe 9 with the fan 10, itis possible to obtain very good ventilation of both the lavatory itselfand the toilet space in which it is arranged and still use a lid 12which fits closely against the seat part 11 and the drum 14. In theevent of good natural ventilation, the fan can be omitted. In order tomake the ventilation of the toilet space even more effective, the lid 12can also be provided with a large number of small holes, suitablycovered with nets. This lavatory is also suitably provided with cleaningnozzles 28.

Through the combination of the closely-fitting lid 12 and the net plugs19, the desired ventilation is obtained without the risk of flies beingable to pass from the container 1 into the toilet room or vice versa, ashas previously been a problem when use was made of lids which did notfit closely.

When it is desired to use water-flushing toilets, usually of theultra-economy-flush type, the problem also arises of the space in thelavatory above a valve arrangement or water-trap arranged therein havingto be ventilated. Previously, this has taken place, for example, via thelid and extraction in the toilet room.

According to the present invention, this problem can be solved by meansof a lavatory of the type illustrated in FIG. 5. This lavatory is madeas an ultra-economy-flush toilet and is provided with a valvearrangement 20 arranged in the central drum 14. In the example shown,the valve is in the form of a flap valve but can just as well consist ofa ball valve or another known arrangement, such as a water trap.

According to FIG. 5, ventilation of the space in the drum 14 above thevalve arrangement 20 is brought about without going via the air in thetoilet room. This is achieved by the drum 14 also being provided withventilation openings 21 which are suitably positioned in line withopenings 18 in the support body 13. In this way, plugs 22 provided withnets, see FIG. 6, can be inserted through each pair of ventilationopenings.

As illustrated by means of the air-flow arrows in FIG. 5, both the spacein the drum 14 above the valve 20 and the surrounding toilet room willbe ventilated via the annular slot 15, the container 1 and theventilation pipe 9. This means that the economy-flush lavatory also canbe provided with a closely-fitting lid 12. The space in the drum 14 canof course be ventilated in the illustrated manner via the slot 15 evenif there are no openings to the toilet room, if the latter is ventilatedin another manner.

As an alternative or in addition to the ventilation openings describedabove in the lavatory, the lid also can be provided with openingscovered with insect nets or be perforated with a large number of smallholes.

The invention has been described in connection with the embodimentsshown in the drawings. However, these may be varied in a number ofrespects within the scope of the patent claims, inter alia with regardto the form of the support body and the drum and also the positioning,number and form of the ventilation openings. The support body and thedrum can also be combined and, for example, consist of a single pipe. Inaddition to being connected to a composting container, it is alsopossible for the lavatory to be connected to a sewage pipe in a sewagesystem.

What is claimed is:
 1. A lavatory for connection to one of a compostingcontainer (1) and a sewage pipe forming part of a sewage system,comprising: a seat part (11); a lid (12) fitted to the seat part; ahollow support body (13) supporting the seat part; and a duct in thesupport body (13) through which fecal matter passes to one of thecomposting container (1) and the sewage pipe, wherein the duct is formedby a tubular drum (14), an upper end of the drum is connected to theseat part (11), a rear wall of the drum slopes backwards from the seatpart in a downward direction forming an angle (α) with the vertical, andthe distance between a front wall and a rear wall of the drum at theupper end of the drum is no shorter than the distance between the frontwall and the rear wall at a bottom end of the drum.
 2. The lavatoryaccording to claim 1, wherein the slope of the rear wall of the drum(14) is such that a rear most point (A) on the delimiting edge of anupper opening of the drum is located directly above the center (B) of alower opening of the drum.
 3. The lavatory according to claim 1, whereinthe angle (α) is of the order of 5-25°.
 4. The lavatory according toclaim 1, further comprising: a number of nozzles (28) arranged in anupper part of the duct and adapted to direct cleaning water-jets againstan inner wall of the duct.
 5. The lavatory according to claim 1, whereinthe lavatory is positioned in a toilet room (6) and connected to thecomposting container (1) lying underneath the toilet room, thecomposting container being provided with a ventilation duct (9), whereinthe drum (14) is arranged in the support body (13) so that a space (15)is formed between the drum and the support body, and at least one of thespace and the duct connects to an interior of the composting container(1), wherein the lavatory further comprises ventilation openings (18)arranged in at least one of a wall (13) of the support body and the lid(12) so that the toilet room (6) is ventilated simultaneously with thecomposting container (1) via the ventilation openings (18), at least oneof the space (15) and the drum (14), the composting container (1), andthe ventilation duct (9).
 6. The lavatory according to claim 5, whereinthe lavatory is an economy-flush water toilet, and further comprises:one of an openable valve arrangement (20) and a water trap provided inthe drum (14); and ventilation openings (21) provided in an upper partof the drum so as also to allow ventilation of a portion of the drumabove one of the valve arrangement and the water trap (14) via the space(15) simultaneously with the ventilation of the toilet room (6).
 7. Thelavatory according to claim 1, wherein the drum (14) is surrounded bythe support body (13), and wherein a slot-shaped space (15), which isformed between the drum and the support body, is filled with an adhesivematerial (27) that interconnects the drum and the support body to form asandwich construction.
 8. The lavatory according to claim 7, wherein theadhesive material (27) is a foamed-plastic, and the drum (14) is made ofstainless steel.
 9. The lavatory according to claim 8, whereinventilation ducts are arranged in the foamed-plastic (27), and thesupport body (13) is made of one of stainless steel and plastic.
 10. Thelavatory according to claim 3, wherein the angle (α) is 10°.
 11. Alavatory, comprising: a seat part (11); a lid (12) fitted to the seatpart; a hollow support body (13) supporting the seat part; and a duct inthe support body (13) through which fecal matter passes, wherein theduct is formed by a tubular drum (14), an upper end of the drum isconnected to the seat part (11), and a rear wall of the drum slopes fromthe seat part such that a rear most point (A) on the delimiting edge ofan upper opening of the drum is located directly above the center (B) ofa lower opening of the drum.
 12. A lavatory, comprising: a seat part(11); a lid (12) fitted to the seat part; a hollow support body (13)supporting the seat part; and a duct in the support body (13) throughwhich fecal matter passes, wherein the duct is formed by a tubular drum(14), an upper end of the drum is connected to the seat part (11), and arear wall of the drum slopes backwards from the seat part in a downwarddirection; and a number of nozzles (28) arranged in an upper part of theduct and adapted to direct cleaning water-jets against an inner wall ofthe duct.
 13. A lavatory for connection to one of a composting container(1) and a sewage pipe forming part of a sewage system, comprising: aseat part (11); a lid (12) fitted to the seat part; a hollow supportbody (13) supporting the seat part; and a duct in the support body (13)through which fecal matter passes to one of the composting container (1)and the sewage pipe, wherein the duct is formed by a tubular drum (14),an upper end of the drum is connected to the seat part (11), and a rearwall of the drum slopes backwards from the seat part in a downwarddirection forming an angle (α) with the vertical, wherein the lavatoryis positioned in a toilet room (6) and connected to the compostingcontainer (1) lying underneath the toilet room, the composting containerbeing provided with a ventilation duct (9), wherein the drum (14) isarranged in the support body (13) so that a space (15) is formed betweenthe drum and the support body, and at least one of the space and theduct connects to an interior of the composting container (1), whereinthe lavatory further comprises ventilation openings (18) arranged in atleast one of a wall (13) of the support body and the lid (12) so thatthe toilet room (6) is ventilated simultaneously with the compostingcontainer (1) via the ventilation openings (18), at least one of thespace (15) and the drum (14), the composting container (1), and theventilation duct (9).
 14. The lavatory according to claim 13, whereinthe lavatory is an economy-flush water toilet, and further comprises:one of an openable valve arrangement (20) and a water trap provided inthe drum (14); and ventilation openings (21) provided in an upper partof the drum so as also to allow ventilation of a portion of the drumabove one of the valve arrangement and the water trap (14) via the space(15) simultaneously with the ventilation of the toilet room (6).
 15. Alavatory comprising: a seat part (11); a lid (12) fitted to the seatpart; a hollow support body (13) supporting the seat part; and a duct inthe support body (13) through which fecal matter passes, wherein theduct is formed by a tubular drum (14), an upper end of the drum isconnected to the seat part (11), and a rear wall of the drum slopesbackwards from the seat part in a downward direction, wherein the drum(14) is surrounded by the support body (13), and wherein a slot-shapedspace (15), which is formed between the drum and the support body isfilled with an adhesive material (27) that interconnects the drum andthe support body to form a sandwich construction.
 16. The lavatoryaccording to claim 15, wherein the adhesive material (27) is afoamed-plastic, and the drum (14) is made of stainless steel.
 17. Thelavatory according to claim 16, wherein ventilation ducts are arrangedin the foamed-plastic (27), and the support body (13) is made of one ofstainless steel and plastic.